After dumping Desiree Hartsock in part one of the Bachelorette finale, Brooks Forester regretted his decision "almost immediately," a source tells UsCredit: ABC

Whoever said you only regret the things you don't do never broke up with someone on national television. In part one of the two-part finale of The Bachelorette, frontrunner Brooks Forester shattered leading lady Desiree Hartsock's hopes and dreams when he pulled her aside before their big overnight date in Antigua to tell her that, despite his desire to be madly in love with her, he just...wasn't. Tears ensued -- many, many tears -- and Brooks and Des went their separate ways. But is that the end of it?

A source reveals in the latest issue of Us Weekly that Brooks really did care "deeply for Des. His feelings were incredibly strong, which made his decision [to leave] difficult." It was so difficult, in fact, that in the aftermath of their breakup, Brooks started second-guessing himself. He regretted the choice "almost immediately," the source tells Us.

That much was evident on Monday's penultimate episode, when Brooks sobbed into the cameras after dumping Des. Calling it the "worst day of [his] life," he said he was "surprised at the love" she had for him and already missed the moments they'd had together.

"I'm surprised," he said, fighting back tears. "I didn't want to leave her. I wasn't expecting that. I didn't know what else to say, though. I just wanted to sit there."

Des, meanwhile, still has two guys in the running -- Chris Siegfried and Drew Kenney -- but she's already admitted that her feelings for them aren't as strong as her feelings for Brooks. "It throws everything off, having Brooks gone," she cried on Monday's episode. "It breaks my heart. It breaks my heart knowing that I have two amazing, unreal guys who do love me. I just can't love them as much...And that's not what they deserve. Honestly, for me, it's over."

Is it, though? Recently ousted suitor Zak Waddell -- who gave Des a promise ring after his hometown date on the July 15 episode -- said he never really saw a connection between Brooks and the Bachelorette. "I never thought Brooks was a match," he tells Us.